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Last week the Senate Resources Committee heard testimony from Alaskans all over the State overwhelmingly against passage of Governor Parnell’s HB77. This bill purports to “streamline” the permitting process by giving the DNR commissioner, a political appointee who serves the whims of the governor, almost unilateral power to approve permits impacting our waterways, fisheries, etc. There were a few who spoke in favor of this bill, many from the Resource Development Council, a group funded largely by corporations based outside Alaska, or even the U.S.